Dare sighed, his eyes hunting her down again.
It was for the best then if she were to finally get smart and stay away from him. Best that she kept her distance. Best that she captured herself a duke.
Chapter Two
Leonora stepped upto the table full of tarts and other confections, surveying the fashionable horde as she snatched up a lemon cake. Should she go and claim her nightly dose of Dare’s charm or continue to keep a bit of distance? Honestly, she had not meant to avoid him. However, Dare could never be part of the moment to rule all moments that she sought.
He was a rake.
And her time was precious. Far too precious to waste on taming a man. And truth be told, she quite liked him wild. A reformed Dare? The very thought was laughable. Like declawing a lion or trimming the wings off a hawk—why ruin something so gloriously untamed? Besides, a man could only reform himself. If Dare wanted to be good, he would choose to be good. If he wanted to stay wicked, he’d choose to stay wicked.
And that brought about a spot of excitement to her thoughts.
She sought his familiar tousle of brown hair amongst the men. Always styled nine parts fashionable for one part scoundrel. Oh, why is itsohard to resist this bit of thrill?
“Looking for someone?” a low voice drawled from behind her.
Leonora whirled, cheeks bulging with cake, and met the gaze of the most devastatingly swoon-worthy man, in her blunt opinion, in the whole of London. Perhaps even Britain. Dark-blue eyes stared back at her. They reminded her of the depth of the ocean, an intriguing contrast to his rather shallow character.
But that was the charm of Dare.
His handsomeness wasn’t subtle. One didn’t have sneak looks at him. Once you looked, you couldn’t look away. He wasthatbeautiful. He knew this, too. The knowledge hung on his smile and echoed back into his posture.
Ah yes, there it was—the smile he was directing at her now, his gaze brimming with sparks as a wayward lock of hair fell over his forehead.
Leonora’s lips tugged upward until they fully matched his. It was also one of those things one couldn’t help in his presence. His smile had a way of luring the corners of even his opponents’ lips to draw upward bit by bit, until one smile matched the other, and neither person could tell who had won and who had lost, but they were grinning at each other like fools.
Like right now.
Leonora swallowed the cake. “Who would I be looking for?” Ah, certain excitement was just as eager to seek her out as she it.
“Perhaps a certain ruffian that you love to jab with teasing remarks?”
“Ruffian?” She laughed. “There are many men such as that.”
“So harsh,” he murmured, the perfection of his smile never slipping. “Have I been cuckolded by my little beauty?”
Leonora gave a less-than-perfect eye roll. “I’m not even going to begin to explain all the things wrong with that statement.”
He chuckled. “I saw you conversing with the Duke of Calstone earlier.”
Her ears perked. “Jealous?”
“Exceedingly. The duke is a much better man than I. Not a ruffian at all.”
“Is that something to be jealous about when your reputation is one of your own making?”
“A man can be jealous of all sorts of things, even when he is not quite in the right.”
“Not quite in the right, you say?” Leonora laughed. “Well, when it comes to prospects, I dare say most men are better than you in that regard. But do not fret, Lord Dare, you still have your roguish charm that setsyouapart from most.”
“What a comforting thought.”
Leonora laughed. He didn’t look comforted at all. Neither did he look offended. This was what she loved about Dare. He didn’t put on airs, and if he did, it was so obvious that she couldn’t help but be amused.
He picked up a lemon cake of his own for inspection. “I noticed you haven’t danced once tonight.”
He’d noticed that? “You should try it,” she said, motioning to the lemon cake. “It’s good.” She turned to survey the dancers. “And you are quite right. I haven’t danced.”
